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A care home worker who gave the wrong medication to a resident who later died has been spared jail.
Jane Barnard, 67, admitted willfully neglecting Derek Davies, 75, who lived in the care home where she was employed and died on September 8, 2021.
Barnard mistakenly gave Mr Davis medication that had been prescribed to another patient, Jason Dodsworth, including 90 mg of extended-release morphine, from which Mr Davis died.
Barnard, of Longlivens, Gloucester, denied killing Mr Davies and a jury found her not guilty of manslaughter following a trial at Gloucester Crown Court.
She had previously pleaded guilty to a second charge of deliberately ignoring Mr Davis and failing to disclose that she had mistakenly administered morphine between September 5 and 9 that year.
She was spared jail and ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work at Gloucester Crown Court on Monday.
Judge Butcher said he had heard evidence of Barnard’s good character, including being described as the “most caring person on staff” at the home, and said she was unlikely to reoffend.
He added: “I have no doubt of your genuine remorse.
“You have suffered for your mistakes. You have been suspended and will not be returning to work.”
Barnard worked as a care worker at Whitridge Court in Abbeydale, Gloucester, where Davies was also a resident at the time of his death.
The trial heard that morphine, a controlled drug, had been stored in the wrong place when Barnard retrieved it.
Controlled drugs in nursing homes were supposed to be locked in designated rooms and administered only in the presence of two staff members.
However, Mr Dodsworth’s morphine was mistakenly stored in his bathroom cupboard.
Although Barnard was not involved in storing the drugs, the court heard she failed to carry out correct checks and follow procedures before taking the controlled drugs.
Crucially, she also took the drugs to the wrong resident, Mr Davis, who was sitting in a common area of the home on the morning of September 6.
She soon realized her mistake and disposed of the medication that Mr Davis was due to receive, pretending that the medication she had given him and intended for Mr Dodsworth had fallen into the sink.
Barnard said she was in a “state” where she could not bring herself to tell colleagues or medical professionals what she had done, even after Mr Davis fell ill and was taken to hospital.
On September 8, two days after the incident, Barnard called Kim Jones, the nursing home’s deputy manager, to tell her that he had given Mr. Davis the wrong medication.
When the nursing home contacted the hospital, it was confirmed that Mr. Davis had died that morning.
The initial cause of death was recorded as a brainstem stroke, but it was later learned that Mr Davies’ true cause of death was morphine intoxication.
At the time of the incident, Barnard had worked as a care worker at Wheatridge Court for 32 years.
Judge Butcher said: “You still failed to mention the mistake you made and you knew it was a serious mistake.
“It’s not just saying nothing.
“However, I accept that you had no intention of harming Mr. Davis.”